Beyond Good and Evil 2 Reunion
by Zay-el
Summary: With the defeat of the DomZ, Jade's only problem is that she can't spend as much time with the kids as she would like to. But what happens when a stranger's arrival reawakens the threat?
1. Chapter 1

Never thought I'd actually start this story, ah well... :)

Disclaimer: I don't own anything (sob), although I would very much like to :D

Dedicated to: The BG&E Revolution Forum for always being there when I needed them, Kitarra for encouraging me to continue writing, and the owner of Guild Wars character: Xelanhua Haiochi for having a really nice conversation with her :)

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**Beyond Good & Evil 2-Reunion**

**Prologue**

Many believe that two major forces dictate our lives: Good and Evil. That their eternal struggle for dominance and for the complete destruction of the other has created our legacy and heritage, since the ancient times, to the present days and continuing into the future. Some of us however, think that by stubbornly believing that only these two forces dictate our lives, we're grasping into childish beliefs. No force can exist without its counterpart: that everyone agrees in. Good and Evil are eternal enemies, neither willing to give ground to the other. Our existence is constantly endangered by their eons-old quarrel. We live our lives with a war above our heads, like an ever-present Damocles sword. But there is always a middle way….

For the skeptical, let's bring an example: Evil comes to invade a world. Good tries to start a rebellion, kept on hold by Evil. Evil clouds the mind of the people, thus gaining more and more ground. And then, unexpectedly a third force arises: someone, whose soul is of kindness, but soon becomes hunted, because of an ancestor's choice made long ago. How can we name this phenomenon? Good? Not solely. Evil? Surely no. Is it a "mutation" of the two forces? A Good-Evil combination? Or is it just the aforementioned golden middle? Some tend to call it names: Balance, Order, but these too have counterparts. The third force doesn't have a name, it just exists…unseen at most times by the other two, acting only when its needed to keep the world from collapsing under the constant quarrel between Good and Evil.

As the struggle for complete dominance continues, Evil finds his way: it tries to lure her to him, so that she may be turned against their enemies. Battles are fought, and with her help Good prevails, and Evil suffers defeat. Another page of our history has been completed, this time not solely written by Good or Evil. Some may call it a day from here, seeing the answers stated above, they would think they know everything by now. How wrong they are…for there is-at least-one more question present. If we are to believe the existence of something beyond Good and Evil, logically the question arises: How can one force stand between the two? The answer, though hard to believe, is as simple as the question: there has to be more than one emissary acting for the purpose of the third force. Knowingly, unknowingly…it doesn't matter, as it never did. None of us know what fate has in store for us, whether our actions will help Good, Evil, or the between…

As we speak, time continues, history is being pushed forward by the acts of the three forces. Destinies cross each other throughout the universe, like a spider's web, forever getting thicker and denser. Choices are made, some of them instantly bringing result, while the rest only set a path for the future. This is our heritage, the so-called "book" of our history. A new page has been started, destined to be the conclusion of an act performed thousands of years ago. An act which has tied countless destinies together, and not only invoke the third force, but is also pushing the two major forces into an inevitable confrontation. The final scene in this grandiose play is only a little bit further now…

And with this final accord, our story continues…


	2. Chapter 2 In Darkness It Roams

Right at the start, I want to thank everyone who reviewed so far, and ask for your forgiveness, for having to make you wait so long. This chapter had been in a 90 ready form since June, but as always, I started making up various reasons as to why shouldn't I finish it._**  
**_

In the end I decided to brush the dust off it (with no small part due to Kitarra and the threat she placed above my head ), and continue for sanity's sake. I hope to finish Ch. 2 by the end of summer, although you shouldn't trust me with deadlines ;)

As a final word: Enjoy!

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_**Chapter 1: In Darkness It Roams...  
**_

Daniel's finger was making lazy circles around the edge of his half-empty coffee-cup. Normally he detested coffee but this was an exception. He could barely sit tight without falling asleep, thus he was really in need for a little energy-boost.

_That's what you get for reading all night..._ He took a sip of the steaming, brownish-black liquid. His face turned into what was a shallow grin at best. _Now I remember why I don't eat around here... _he thought, taking another sip.

The coffee's horrible flavor was testing his taste buds to the maximum, a point where he could barely endure the instinct to spit it out. He put down the cup, his head almost going along with it. _Can't even make a decent coffee..._ He angrily pushed the cup away.

Leaning back against the chair, he looked around. The canteen of the U.S.S. Stardustwas starting to come alive, the early-birds coming in for a morning snack. Daniel on the other hand was more of a vampire-bat right now, than any kind of bird. He had no idea of what kept him awake, but it certainly wasn't the coffee.

Yawning like a mule, he glanced over to the muted TV. So far the weather reports of the surrounding planets didn't interest him, nor did the local gossip. This time though, an interesting article caught his attention.

He quickly peeked around for the waitress, finding her a few tables away from him. Not wanting to stand up or wait, Daniel put his middle- and index-finger in his mouth, letting out a loud train-whistle. The waitress heard the signal-_who didn't?_-and went to his table.

"I'm guessing you need something?" she asked, grinning tauntingly.

Daniel examined the girl above her. She seemed to be just before 20, with a short, blonde hair, brown eyes and a very distinctive grin.

"Yeah, I'd like to order a little extra volume on the TV over there, preferably with no sugar." he pointed at the monitor on the wall.

The girl shook her head at his wisecrack, walked back behind the bar and turned up the sound.

_-wo and a half weeks have passed since the total defeat of the DomZ Armada, at the hands of the Hillian Army, at Selene Moon. During a cover attack, a small force managed to assassinate their leader, rendering the DomZ forces incapable of returning fire. A moderate number of DomZ ships however escaped and are being searched for even now. In other news, the Cratixian Empire experienced a severe ea-_

Daniel was no longer listening to the news; he was rather thinking about what he had just heard. _A war-ravaged world? Great...exactly the change of atmosphere I needed. _ The waitress noticed him not paying attention any more, so she once again muted the TV.

_I should really start looking for a place to spend the nights, before we reach orbit. _At this point, his thoughts were distorted by another earth-shaking yawn. _On second though, I really shouldn't do anything while like this...Best go retire to my chambers instead._

As though his mind was being read, the girl appeared next to him and handed the bill over. Daniel got his card out and transferred the money along with a small tip. Done with the formalities, he stood up and walked, or more precisely, stumbled out of the canteen. Continuing down the hallway, he turned his way towards the dormitories. _354...355...356... _he counted the door tags. _357-Home..._

Already half asleep, he crashed onto the door, pulled out the entry card and tried to insert it. Due to his state, this only worked the third time. The door opened with a slide, a bigger chaos greeting him inside, than the aftermath of an earthquake. Books were scattered in nearly every corner of the room, leaving only a small trail to his bed open.

He briefly glanced at the mirror on the wall as he passed by; the reflection showed a boy having just passed his second X, his short brown hair pointing into every existing direction, his green eyes dimly lighting instead of the usual vigorous sparkle. His otherwise cheerful face was as though he just came out of his crypt, tired streaks rupturing his young lines. _Truly horrifying..._

As Daniel fell flat on the bed, his head hit something hard. Pulling the hard-covered piece of literature out from under the pillow, he was greeted by the image of a soldier holding a book with a stoic look on his face. _Carlson & Peeeee...ters._ His thoughts were rapidly falling apart from the lack of sleep he had.

_Kinda boring literature these Hillians have. I hope they have other less...devoted books too. _Throwing it off the bed, he lied down again, face-up, crossing his arms behind the pillow. _I'll just rest my eyes for a...few...minutes... _he thought, drifting into sleep.

- - -

Jade leaned back against the hard-wood chair she was sitting on, yawning. She had been looking through old Alpha Mdisk transmissions all day in Pey'j's workshop while he was over in the city, and she was dead tired by now. _I can only blame myself for it; I was the one who volunteered. _

Although since the victory on Selene there had been no further attacks or kidnappings, Hahn still believed that there might be one or two hidden bases around. Jade agreed with him on this and that if they exist, they must be terminated ASAP. But to promise to go through all the Mdisks that were found...seemed like a whole lot closer to foolishness than cautiousness, especially from her.

_Seriously, I'm beginning to miss the attacks..._ She even had to turn down Fehn when he asked whether she would come and play with them (which added she would have gladly done instead). _But duty's first..._ she gritted her teeth, annoyed

An hour later, she angrily slammed on the player, having more than enough of it for one day. _One day? If I have to do this for one more day, I swear I'll go with the kids instead... _She glanced at the pile of discs, still waiting for her, an evil smile crossed on her face. _Well what do you know...frizbees. _

Jade rubbed her burning eyes, pushing a button and without even looking, lowered her hand to take out the disk. Most interestingly however, nothing happened. Curiously, Jade crouched down and peeked into the disk holder. Suddenly the player began to shake, bolts of electricity flowing through its surface.

She leaned back, still looking inside. When she noticed the holder going mad too, out of pure instinct she immediately ducked. The disk inside was practically shot out of it, flying through the small room before the wall ended its flight. Jade examined the fragments with a surprised look on her face. _Pey'j should really fix that thing before somebody gets hurt. _For now however, she was too tired to care about it.

She glanced over at the Beluga...or more correctly, the empty space where the Beluga was supposed to be. Her uncle took off with it over to the IRIS base earlier today, much to Jade's dismay. A quick flight would have surely jolted her up a bit, no matter how tired or bored she would be.

As she walked out of the cave of malfunctioning machineries, otherwise known as Pey'j's domain, a cool breeze hit her. She didn't even realize until now that it was already late night. She was surprised to notice the kids, all sleeping under the tree. Even Woof was snoring over there, providing a pillow for the youngsters. Jade shook her head, and walked down to them.

From Yoa, this wasn't new since she tend to sleep outside nearly every single night. Crouching down besides Fehn, she lightly jigged him. He yawned and half-opened his large brown eyes. "Is it morning already?" he whimpered wearily, immediately falling back into sleep again. Jade didn't have the heart to wake him and the others, so she quietly crept back into the Lighthouse.

While searching through her wardrobe, she glimpsed up for a second. The upper floor was coming along nicely thanks to the help of the many grateful Hillians. Most of them considered helping rebuild her home was the least they could do. Although she would never admit it, they really did need all the help they could get. Rebuilding a half-destroyed lighthouse was no small feat, concerning the money and the enormous effort in needed, but with the support they've got, it was much smoother.

Smiling at the thought, she quickly changed into a simple light-green nightgown since her regular clothes craved for a washing. She took a few blankets out of the drawer under her bed then went back to the kids.

Carefully, she put the covers over them, before lying down beside Fehn, wrapping the last one around them. She took one last look at the kids before going to sleep. None of their parents came to take them yet, still they remained cheerful and hoping. Jade couldn't help thinking how quiet the Lighthouse would be without them.

Aside from Woof, Pey'j and Secundo, these little kids meant everything to her. They were her family and she knew exactly just how hard it would be for her to let them go if the day would come. She suddenly felt Fehn cuddling close to her in his sleep.

The girl smiled at him with the same love she harnessed for all of them. _It's not right to think about the future, or the present will just slip away before your eyes...When the time comes I'll worry, but until then, I want to enjoy the time I still have with them. _Jade kissed his forehead, and laid her head down, the sweet sleep waiting for her already.

The sound of an explosion woke Daniel from his slumber. He fell off the bed from the sudden shock. As he got up, he ran to the door. _What in God's sake is happening here? _He literally tore it open, and stepped outside.

Molten heat blew into his face and he could barely see from the smoke. People were running around frightened, a woman directly crashing into him. Without helping him up, she rose and ran off, screaming in panic. Daniel started coughing from the fume; it was burning his lungs. He tried to stand up, but without pure air and the knowledge of where he would go, he couldn't.

Suddenly a hand cut through the dense cloud, pulling him to his feet. "Thanks." he muttered, covering his face with one hand. He was met with the visage of a man dressed in a black uniform.

"Don't mention it." he grunted. He was one of the senior officers who kept up the law in the ship; Daniel had already seen him patrolling a few times. Seeming in his late forties, quite a few scars on his face indicated he was far from a rookie.

"I'm Daniel...What the hell is going on?" he asked. The officer shook his head, readied his pistol and pointed towards the exit. The boy got the message and ran out, the man sealing the place off behind them.

"Robert. Got attacked out of nowhere." he answered him now, out of direct danger. "A ship started firing on us, breached the hull, and started coming aboard. They killed the pilots, laid waste to the on-board computer, trashing the comm systems on the way. The Stardust and its passengers are theirs..."

"Come on, we need to keep going." he stated once Daniel got some fresh air. The boy briefly examined him: deep brown eyes full of grim memories, brownish-gray hair and a strict, yet under the surface, kind face. Inside, he felt he if he could trust anyone, it would be him. Daniel jumped up and the two shook hands. Now together, they continued towards the escape pods.

"We don't even know what these things are, our cams got fried the second they came aboard." he panted while running, his pistol readied in his hand.

"Any tips?" Daniel asked, trying to keep up with him.

"Nothing definite. This way." he pointed to the left. Suddenly the door that way indented from inside, accompanied by a scratching sound. "On second thought, RIGHT!" exclaimed the officer, dragging the frozen Daniel along.

Together, they ran across the corridor, finally stopping in a small, circular room. Here, they stopped to regain their breaths, both leaning against the wall. Whatever set foot on the ship had malevolent intentions towards the passengers, and neither of them wanted to share that fate. Suddenly, a womanly scream tore through the air. The boy jumped to the door to open it, but his newfound companion held him back.

"We have to help her!" he shouted, determined to open the door no matter what.

"And you really think I'll be able to stop whatever is beyond it with THIS?" replied the old man angrily, shaking the pistol in front of his face. Nevertheless, he let the door ajar and they peeked out. In the root of the wall, a girl was lying, blood pouring from inside her yellow waitress dress, her cold, lifeless eyes gazing at them.

Daniel's hands clenched into fists from the anger. "Let's go..." Robert sighed, putting his hand on the boy's shoulder, lightly pushing him forward. He silently obeyed and they continued along their escape.

It wasn't long before they had to stop again. This time Robert was the one who halted their move, scratching his leg with a very pained expression.

"What's wrong?" asked Daniel concerned.

"War, that's what's wrong boy..." grunted the old man. "And participating in it is even worse..." he continued, rubbing his aching leg. As he looked up, he saw the boy lending his hand to him. The officer looked at the gesture in disbelief at first, but then chuckled lightly, accepting his help. Daniel helped him back on his feet, and they ran together to the next door.

While he pulled out his key card to open it, the boy leaned against the wall. _I can't believe this is happening. _He shook his head in disbelief, when a sudden pain made him fall on his knees. Robert turned around and saw him holding his head, wincing in agony.

It was like someone stung a white-hot needle in his brain, and then repeated the process a few more times. _Run,fast,escape,danger,run,run,death,run,fast!!_! Voices howled in his head, bringing him to a breaking point. When the agony finally ended, he realized he was on the ground, Robert crouching beside him.

With his support he slowly raised, limbs shaking, a blunt pain remaining in his head. "You okay?" he supported him to the door.

"I-I think so..." Daniel replied. "We have to hurry." he stepped forward. The war-veteran nod behind him, and went before him, guiding them both towards the pods.

The corridor they were on was long, with only the first few lights functioning properly. The rest of them lighted up occasionally, leaving the end in uncertain shadows. Robert readied his pistol, turned on his flash light, gesturing to Daniel to follow him closely. So he did; they covered half of the corridor in a few minutes. As they went, a violent quake hit the ship, the two almost fell over. Daniel glanced at him with horror in his eyes.

"The ship is starting to fall apart." whispered the old man, guessing his question. "I doubt we have more than an hour till it blows to pieces." he gritted his teeth.

Slowly, they kept on moving, arriving at the door shortly. Near the end, a scratching sound reached them. It seemed to come from right above them, scurrying back and forth. Warily, they went on, the sound becoming louder and louder.

All of a sudden, the ceiling blew open and something fell down behind them. Robert turned that way, slowly backing towards the door. As the light flickered on for a second, Daniel could briefly see a purple glimmer, before the officer shot it down. They heard a loud shriek, and then it was dead silence once again.

He pointed the flashlight towards whatever it was...but it was no longer there. Daniel looked around searching for it in the dark, with no luck. "Go." whispered Robert to the boy. "What?" he asked back.

"Go to the door, quick." he placed the card in his hand. "I'll be with you in a minute...hopefully." he said, keeping the last sentence just to himself.

The boy hesitated, but in the end did as the old man told him. Robert watched as he left, then turned back to face the hiding creature. He pointed the flashlight at various places, covering more ground. Suddenly, he noticed something moving from the back of his eye.

With incised reflexes, he shot that way, a loud crack, like a glass braking, informing him of the hit. The creature shrieked its last and fell on the ground. As the officer lighted the carcass, the blood rushed down from his face. The two large paws ending in deadly claws, and the purple shards around the corpse indicated his worst fear. Without second thought, he ran to Daniel, already hearing the same scratching noises behind him.

"Damn!" hissed Daniel as the key card once again failed to open the metal door. _Must be an electrical jam. _Hearing footsteps, he spun around, raising his fists. Out of the shadows, he noticed a grayish glint. Sighing in relief, he lowered his hands, Robert appearing a minute later. He seemed nervous and he could spot the sure signs of dread. He ran to the door and tried to open it, with no luck.

Swearing, he reached for his belt, pulling out a small, round object. "Robert, what is it?" asked Daniel.

"No time." he hissed. "We have to get away before-"

Several thuds behind indicated they were no longer alone.

"Blow off the lock." he said, tossing the grenade over to Daniel. "It's a small charge, so be careful, we only have this one shot."

"What about you?" he asked back.

"I'll hold them off for as long as I can, now DO IT!" he commanded, turning his back and stepping forward.

He raised his half-empty pistol along with the flashlight, and at the first sign of movement, shot. One, two, three, four times in a row. As the empty clip clicked, he quickly reloaded, but it was already too late... As Daniel turned back, he saw Robert standing firmly, the firearm suddenly dropping from his hand.

"NO!" he cried as he realized a claw sticking out of his back, blood dripping down it.

The creature responsible for it noticed the boy and tore its talon out of the old man. The officer's limp body fell on the ground, a puddle of blood streaming from it. Daniel picked up the abandoned pistol from the ground and aiming directly at the creature, fired. The bullet pierced through what sounded like glass, but didn't stop whatever was coming.

More and more shadowy figures appeared behind it, slowly closing around him. He frantically shot at everything before the clip finally emptied out. Daniel angrily threw the gun at the closest one. Fear and anger mixing in him, he readied the grenade.

"Got to hell!" he criedbefore a claw slashing at his head stopped him from lighting the small explosive. He only felt a sharp pain, riving him away from space and time...

- - -

_He slowly rose from the ground. Next to him, an open escaped pod awaited its passenger; the last one alive on the ship. Every single fiber in his body screamed from the unimaginable pain. Blood poured from his cuts, onto the cold floor. He wanted to cry out to let it all out into the world, but even his lungs were searing from the fume. _

_He let his dying vision travel to his hand; it was red from the blood running down on it. Even the pain in his head renewed, causing him to fall back on the ground, grabbing hold of it and begging for a halt. He laid there, tears running down his scarred face. His crawling insides wanted to come out, but he was too weak even to vomit. _

_He could hear explosions around him; whole corridors blowing up, burning the fresh bodies to a crisp. It would have been so much better just to lie down and wait for death to finally claim him...but no. He didn't want to die...not here...not yet...not like this. Stretching both his will and body to an absolute maximum, he rose once more, grabbing the pod's side for support. _

_He stumbled into the cool container, lying down inside it. His eyes were tired, both from the horrors he saw and the constant struggle with the pain inside him. With his shaking hand, he pushed a button and the pod's lid closed on him, the hatch opening below. As he felt the pod ejecting from the ship, he let his senses die off and the world slurred before his eyes once more..._


End file.
